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Willy Adames' focus remains on ensuring Giants bounce back in 2026 MLB season originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — By just about any measure, this was one of the most memorable nights of Willy Adames’ career. 

The Giants shortstop won the Willie Mac Award before the game, and there was no hiding what that meant to him. For the first time all year, he seemed nervous as he accepted the award and gave a speech. Adames then caught ceremonial first pitches from his parents, and when all of the festivities were over, he hit a first-inning homer that got him within one of ending a notorious drought at Oracle Park. 

WILLY ADAMES BLASTS HIS 29TH HOMER OF THE SEASON

JUST ONE AWAY FROM BREAKING THE STREAK 👀 pic.twitter.com/K0T4I5UoCn

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) September 27, 2025

It was a good night for Adames, but right now, it’s hard for him to fully celebrate anything. He came to San Francisco to get the team back to October, and by that measure, this season was a failure. 

“For me, obviously (30) is a big deal, but I’m just trying to win, man,” Adames said Friday night. “I don’t really care about hitting 30. Obviously I want to do it, but it’s not something that I’m like, ‘Oh, if I don’t do it …’ No, if I don’t do it this year, I’ll do it next year. Rafi is going to do it for sure, and Chappy, if they stay healthy.

“For me, it was all about winning. (Getting to 30) was not my main focus.”

Adames thought he would spend this weekend preparing for a postseason series hitting in front of Rafael Devers and Matt Chapman. Instead, the Giants are left to figure out how they can avoid another second half slide next season. Part of that will fall on Adames. 

When he signed the biggest free agent contract in franchise history, Adames was given a leadership role. That’s what he wanted, and from the start, the keys were handed to him, Chapman and Logan Webb. 

This has not been an easy stretch for any of them, and Adames said he already has given plenty of thought to what went wrong. He made reference Friday to his slow start to the season, but also to the lack of energy from the entire team at points of the second half. 

“I feel like we kind of lost that. It’s tough,” he said. “We’ve got to continue to, when the second half hits, just continue the same mentality that we had in the first half. I feel like we lost it after the All-Star Game and we need to be better next year.” 

Like Webb did on Tuesday, Adames mentioned how much talent is already on the roster and how much he trusts president of baseball operations Buster Posey to make the necessary adjustments. Posey is expected to be active, but still, there’s only so much he can do. He already committed huge portions of the future payroll by signing Adames and trading for Devers. 

A lot of this has to come from within, and Adames knows that. He said he already has started to think about what needs to change. 

“It’s something that we need to address,” he said. “The core of the guys that are here, we need to maybe have some dinners throughout the offseason and figure out a way that we can keep the clubhouse together and (have) the same energy throughout the year. We need to figure out something to keep that energy that we had in the first half this year. Whatever it takes for next year, we’ve got to do it.”

The offseason work might be relatively simple. Most of the team’s leaders have homes in the Phoenix area, and the majority of the young players plan to either move there or arrive in January for early workouts. 

There will be time to build cohesion before pitchers and catchers report, and to figure out how to be better on and off the field in 2026. Until then, all the Giants can do is try to win out and leave with some positive vibes. 

Adames figures to get about nine or 10 more chances this weekend to hit No. 30, and while it’s not front of mind, it certainly would be a nice end-of-season reward for a fan base that has shown up this year. On Friday, with the historically-bad Colorado Rockies in town, the Giants sold out Oracle Park. The crowd was lively throughout a 6-3 win, and in Adames final four plate appearances there was plenty of anticipation. 

Adames thanked those fans in his speech and again after the win. He also thanked his teammates, who rewarded him for keeping his energy and smile throughout an up-and-down season that he found personally disappointing. 

"I'm proud to wear this uniform."

Willy Adames expresses his gratitude for Giants fans after winning the 2025 Willie Mac Award 🥹 pic.twitter.com/WlmwmuczeO

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) September 27, 2025

There were plenty of days in the first half when Adames looked up and saw a batting average that started with a one, but whenever a teammate homered, he was the first one there to remove the helmet. After every big win, he was there with a splash of water or Powerade. Even in a lost year, that wasn’t overlooked in the clubhouse.

“Obviously getting that award is the biggest award you can win as a Giant,” Adames said. “It’s an honor. It’s truly special for me.”

See you in October: Red Sox clinch playoff spot on Rafaela's walk-off triple originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

For the first time in four years, the Boston Red Sox will play postseason baseball.

The Red Sox punched their ticket in dramatic fashion Friday night when Ceddanne Rafaela launched a triple to dead center field in the ninth inning off Detroit Tigers reliever Tommy Kahnle. Romy Gonzalez scored from first base to give Boston a walk-off 4-3 victory, which secured its spot in the playoffs.

Friday’s dramatic win helped end a three-year playoff drought for the franchise, which last made the postseason in 2021. That run included a win in the AL Wild Card Game over the Yankees and a 3-1 series win over the Rays in the American League Division Series. The Red Sox jumped out to a 2-1 series lead over the Astros in the American League Championship Series but lost three straight games to lose the series in six games. The Astros outscored the Red Sox 23-3 over those final three games.

The Red Sox will look considerably different this postseason, as Garrett Whitlock is the only member of the active roster who played in that ALCS against Houston. (Tanner Houck, who made five appearances that postseason, remains on the Boston roster but went on the IL in May.) The 2021 season was manager Alex Cora’s first season back with the Red Sox after he served his season-long suspension from MLB in 2020.

Though the ultimate story of the 2025 Red Sox will depend on what happens in the playoffs, making the playoffs at all was widely considered an impossibility as late as June, when the Red Sox traded superstar third baseman Rafael Devers and flip-flopped around the .500 mark for the entire month.

They entered June in fourth place, 8.5 games out of first place in the AL East and 3.5 games out of a wild-card spot, and they finished the month in almost the same spot: seven games back in the East, three games out of the wild card.

Yet a season-long 10-game winning streak before the All-Star break put the team above .500 for good. And though they emerged from that break to go 2-5, they’d win their next four series to firmly establish their place in the postseason picture.

That footing was once again questioned in early September, when rookie sensation Roman Anthony suffered an oblique strain that ended his regular season and could keep him out of the entire postseason. A 5-8 stretch followed the Anthony injury but the Red Sox, at risk of falling out of the playoff picture, won consecutive road series in Tampa and Toronto to reestablish their spot, then punched their postseason ticket with their MLB-leading 10th walk-off win on Friday night.

The Red Sox became the fourth team in the American League (and third in the AL East) to clinch a playoff spot, joining the Blue Jays, Mariners and Yankees. Their opponent is yet to be determined, but they’re almost certain to begin their postseason journey on the road for Game 1 of the Wild Card Series on Tuesday, Sept. 30.

They could be heading to New York, Detroit, Toronto or Cleveland, depending on how the weekend’s games play out across the league.

The Mets have made one decision regarding their starters this weekend.

Manager Carlos Mendoza confirmed before Friday's series opener against the Marlins that Clay Holmes will take the mound Saturday. The news comes just a few days after Holmes pitched an inning out of the bullpen in Chicago. 

When asked what their plans for Sean Manaea are, and whether he can pitch out of the bullpen or even start Sunday's regular season finale, the Mets skipper was non-committal and is only thinking about Friday's game.

"We’ll see, we got to get through today and we’ll go from there," he said. "The only thing we know is Clay will start and we’ll go from there."

Manaea piggybacking off of Holmes' start on Saturday is on the table. It worked against the Padres in mid-September but was less effective against the Nationals when the Mets swapped their order last week. Both pitchers came out of the bullpen on Wednesday against the Cubs and had mixed results but Mendoza pointed to how they "bounced back" from that outing as the reason for Holmes starting over Manaea.

The questions for Mendoza were directed toward Sunday's game. Again, the team has yet to name a starter and the options are plentiful, but Mendoza remains focused on Friday's game.

"We’re not thinking about Sunday. We got to take care of business today and then take care of business tomorrow and see where we’re at," he said. "We’re not planning ahead. This is literally one day at a time here. We know Clay is going to start tomorrow and then we’ll see who‘s available. We got to get through today’s game and how many bullpen arms are going to be available after today’s game. There’s a lot of moving pieces here."

David Peterson, who would be pitching on normal rest if he got the ball for the regular season finale, is an option to start, but Mendoza didn't rule out Peterson coming out of the bullpen. 

"We’ll get through today and see if we need him out of the bullpen tomorrow, or we’ll need him to start the next day. It’s literally one day at a time," he said."

Kodai Senga update

Senga's status for the rest of the regular season/postseason is still unknown. Mendoza confirmed the right-hander is still in Port St. Lucie and threw another bullpen. When asked if the team is considering shutting down Senga, Mendoza said, "We haven’t got there yet." 

Earlier this week, Senga threw a live BP that produced some concerning results. Senga's velocity was noticeably down, but the weather was affecting him, so the team is unsure what to do with their third-year pitcher.

What we learned as Trevor McDonald impresses again in Giants' win over Rockies originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

BOX SCORE

SAN FRANCISCO — As a team, there’s not much for the Giants to play for this weekend. Sure, they’d like to finish strong, and a .500 record is certainly better than finishing with a losing season, but they were eliminated from postseason contention on Tuesday and can’t even play spoiler.

But there’s a lot on the line individually during the final series of the year, both in terms of milestones and impressing the front office. In that respect, it was a good night for quite a few Giants. 

Willy Adames got closer to breaking the 30-homer curse, Heliot Ramos hit a loud three-run shot, and Trevor McDonald continued his September surge as the Giants beat the Colorado Rockies 6-3. They’ll send Justin Verlander and Logan Webb to the mound the next two days in hopes of sweeping the Rockies and finishing the year at 81-81.

Here are some of the boxes that were checked in Game 160: 

One He Won’t Forget

This was always going to be a memorable night for Adames, who was honored before the game after winning the Willie Mac Award. In that speech, Adames noted that it was a special honor because it was voted on by teammates, and he later caught ceremonial first pitches from his parents. 

A few minutes later, Adames blasted a two-run shot to left, ending a run of 14 games without a homer. The shortstop is now at 29 and has roughly nine or 10 at-bats against a bad pitching staff to try and become the first Giant since 2004 to hit 30 homers. 

WILLY ADAMES BLASTS HIS 29TH HOMER OF THE SEASON

JUST ONE AWAY FROM BREAKING THE STREAK 👀 pic.twitter.com/K0T4I5UoCn

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) September 27, 2025

The 29th of his first year in San Francisco left the bat at 110.2 mph, making it his hardest-hit ball of the year. Adames flew out, got hit by a pitch, struck out and walked in his next four plate appearances. 

Milestone Night

With a single in the bottom of the fifth, Matt Chapman reached 1,000 hits in the big leagues. He had 509 in Oakland, 245 in Toronto, and now 246 in San Francisco. Chapman also made one of his better plays of the year …

A five-time Gold Glove Award winner, Chapman might have a hard time defending his NL crown, in part because he missed 32 games with hand injuries. He is third among NL third basemen in Outs Above Average, but at four OAA, he is well behind Ke’Bryan Hayes, who has 21 and was the 2023 NL Gold Glove Award winner at third. The SABR Defensive Index, which accounts for roughly 25 percent of voting, also ranked Chapman well behind Hayes in the most recent public update. 

Remember The Name

McDonald has been on the 40-man roster all year, but he didn’t get called up until last week. There might not be anyone in orange and black who has done more recently to improve their standing heading into next spring. 

Five days after he opened eyes with a strong start at Dodger Stadium, McDonald struck out 10 and walked none over seven innings. The lone blemish came in the fifth, when he gave up a couple of singles and then hung a curveball that Ezequiel Tovar lined over the center field wall. McDonald got 18 swinging strikes, which is tied for the eighth-most by a Giants starter this season. 

The Giants are likely to seek multiple rotation additions in free agency, but McDonald has certainly passed a few other young starters on the organization’s overall depth chart. At the very least, he should get a chance to follow the 2024 Landen Roupp path and win a bullpen job. 

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Nola climbs to 2nd-most strikeouts in franchise history as Phils best Twins originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Since his return from the injured list in mid-August, manager Rob Thomson has been unwavering in his confidence when it came to starting pitcher Aaron Nola. Through a trio of six earned run outings, bad innings and general mediocrity during those seven starts, Thomson didn’t flinch.

Nola proved him a knowledgeable man Friday night as he retired the first 17 batters he faced and carried the Phillies to a 3-1 win over the Minnesota Twins at Citizens Bank Park on a beautiful early fall evening. In the last three games, Phillies starting pitchers combined to go 24 2/3 innings without giving up a run.

Whether Nola was auditioning for a starting spot in the playoffs, a long relief role out of the bullpen or anything else, he aced his outing with a terrific mix of pitches and precision command as he finished his eight innings by allowing just two hits, no walks and nine strikeouts on just 90 pitches. The lone blemish was a solo home run by Christian Vazquez in the sixth.

“It feels good to get back out there in the eighth again. It’s been a while,” said Nola. “Since I got off the injured list I don’t think I’ve even been in the seventh. It’s good to go deep tonight and save that bullpen out there a little bit and Duran come in and close that game out. Good game all around by all the guys.

“I know that one inning has been biting me a lot this year. It’s good to kind of roll through the first half of the game with no runs, it kind of makes things easier. Those early outs definitely helped a lot. Ground ball outs. The leadoff guy almost every time was big.”

Pressed before the game whether Nola was part of his starting pitching rotation when the postseason begins on October 4, Thomson would commit to nothing, saying that he wanted Nola to go out and pitch well.

Mission accomplished. In doing so, Nola passed Phillies legend Robin Roberts for second on the all-time Phillies strikeout list with 1,876, trailing only Steve Carlton’s 3,031.

“He was great,” said Thomson. “His fastball command. Touched 94. He was 93 in the eighth, so he held his velocity. Landed the curveball, his changeup was good. He was fantastic. That’s who he is. With a guy like Nols, you know how hard he works, how hard he prepares. The competitor that he is. You know it’s there. I don’t worry about him at all. I really don’t. I think it’s great for him. He’s dealt with some injuries, obviously, and come back from them, building back up. So that’s a good way to end the year.”

The Phillies gave Nola the lead in the first on a rare Kyle Schwarber infield single, a single by Bryce Harper and a sacrifice fly by Alec Bohm. Red hot Edmundo Sosa hit a solo home run to left in the fifth and Philadelphia tacked another on in the sixth when Bohm scored on a Brandon Marsh double down the rightfield line.

But the story of the night was Nola. While perfect through 5 2/3, his most impressive inning may have come in the seventh. Former Phillie Kody Clemens tripled to the wall in center to lead off the inning. Nola then got Ryan Jeffers to strike out swinging on four pitches, Trevor Larnach to strike out looking on three pitches and Brooks Lee to fly weakly to left on his second pitch.

“That was huge. That was a big spot in the game,” said catcher J.T. Realmuto. “In the playoffs there’s obviously going to be moments like that. So, to see him come through, strike out two hitters in a row, get the third popup, that’s a huge moment in the game and a big moment for him.”

The whole game was a big moment as Nola convinced just about everyone, except his manager, who needed no convincing, that he’s still capable of gems like this.

“I feel like the more I throw, the more I pitch, the more I keep feeling healthy,” said Nola. “The fastball command usually creeps up a little bit. I feel like over the years once I start the season it takes a little bit to get rolling. Once I came off the IL it was kind of the same thing, took a second to get rolling.”

He was rolling so well that when Thomson asked if he wanted to go out for the eighth, there was little hesitation from his starting pitcher. And all that happened in that final inning for him was three more outs on just 10 pitches and another boost in confidence for most.

“Everything was working,” said Realmuto. “That was the sharpest I’ve seen him this season. Curveball had good bite to it, the changeup was as good as I’ve seen and then he was locating the fastball. Just had everything going for him.

“It was great to see. You know Nola, he’s a competitor. This season, obviously, wasn’t the one he wanted but to see him go out on top and throw a really good start and take some momentum into the postseason, it’s really good to see. Nola’s who he is for a reason. He’s been really good for us for a long time, especially coming off a start like that, the confidence is definitely high with him.”

And now he finds himself second on a list with only one of the greatest pitchers of all time ahead of him.

“It’s humbling, for sure, to be on a list with those guys that played here,” he said. “Lot of really great pitchers that have pitched in a Phillies uniform. To be up there with those names is pretty humbling.”

Willy Adames wins Giants prestigious Willie Mac Award in first season with team originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — The Willie Mac Award was created by former Giants owner Bob Lurie, who was horrified that McCovey was playing across the bay in Oakland and vowed to bring McCovey home. Three years after he returned, the Giants gave out the award for the first time, and there have been 44 winners over the past four-plus decades. 

For the first time, the Willie Mac Award winner is an actual Willy. 

Willy Adames is the 2025 winner of the award, given annually to the most inspirational Giant, as voted on by teammates, coaches, support staff and fans. Adames, a clubhouse leader through thick and thin, won in his first year with the Giants. 

The smile never left Adames’ face this season and he never stopped splashing teammates with Powerade or removing their helmets after homers, even when he was going through his own struggles. Adames was hitting under .200 through the season’s first month and had just five homers over his first 65 games as a Giant, but he kept the energy up throughout and eventually turned his own campaign around. 

“I’m truly honored to receive this Willie Mac Award. This means so much to me because it comes from my teammates, coaches and our fans,” Adames said in his speech. “I’m proud to wear this uniform for all of the years I’m going to be here.”

"I'm proud to wear this uniform."

Willy Adames expresses his gratitude for Giants fans after winning the 2025 Willie Mac Award 🥹 pic.twitter.com/WlmwmuczeO

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) September 27, 2025

Adames has 28 homers entering the season’s final weekend, giving him a real shot to become the first Giant in 21 years to reach 30 in orange and black. His .733 OPS is lower than he and the Giants hoped, but is a number that would have been hard to imagine in April and May. Adames has also turned his defense around after a shaky start. 

Adames said in July that this season was difficult on him, but he tried his best to continue to be a team leader during his own down times. The energy never wavered. 

“Obviously when you’re not performing well it’s tough to keep yourself together, but that’s the one thing I can control,” Adames said in July. “I told Buster (Posey), that’s the only thing that’s never going to change: My attitude and my work ethic and my willingness to try to be better. My energy is going to be the same every day, no matter if I’m doing good or bad.

“In the beginning when we were winning a lot of games, that helped. And then when we were struggling, it was tough for me to keep myself together because we weren’t winning and I had to step up and do my thing. We have a really good group in here that was like, ‘You’re going to be alright, you’re going to be alright.’ Everybody had my back and I feel like that’s what makes teams great.”

Adames became the first shortstop to win the award since Brandon Crawford in 2016. He joined Matt Chapman and Wilmer Flores as current Giants who have won. 

Before Friday’s game, manager Bob Melvin said Adames has been “as advertised.”

“I’m very impressed with Willy,” he said. “He’s the same person every day. He’s not trying to fake it, he’s just trying to be the same person every day.”

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They didn’t dogpile on the mound. They were animated but relatively reserved in an abbreviated clubhouse champagne shower.

It was no doubt a celebratory moment for the Dodgers, capturing their 12th division title in the last 13 years with an 8-0 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday.

But it was accompanied by moments of internal reflection, as well. About a regular season that has posed challenges at every turn. About a six-month slog in which frustration and adversity were around every corner.

“This has been a tough year,” third baseman Max Muncy said.

“Not the smoothest of rides to get here,” first baseman Freddie Feeman added.

The reasons why are numerous, from early-season injuries in the rotation to an extended second-half slump from the lineup to a string of bullpen collapses that made the division race unexpectedly close.

Through it all, however, ran one common thread.

While there is no universal consensus over the veracity of a so-called “World Series hangover,” some team members have acknowledged the unique obstacles that have come with trying to repeat as champions.

There is the physical toll. The mental exhaustion. The threat of complacency and stagnant satisfaction.

Read more:Dodgers defeat Diamondbacks to clinch their 12th NL West title in 13 seasons

In their bid to win a second consecutive World Series this year — something no team has accomplished since the New York Yankees’ three-peat from 1998-2000 — the Dodgers at various times seemed to battle each one.

“Baseball is different than any other sport,” manager Dave Roberts said. “The psyche part of it, the battle of attrition, all that stuff kind of matters. There's probably many reasons why [repeating as World Series champions] hasn't been done since the Yankees did it [from 1998-2000]. But that's something we're trying to do. We have an opportunity to make history. It hasn't been easy. But that's part of it."

The question now: Have the obstacles of the regular season steeled them for another championship run? Or will this prove to be a campaign that in some ways was ill-fated from the start?

“This was as tough a path as we’ve been through,” Roberts said, amid Thursday’s clubhouse celebration. “But the old adage — iron sharpens iron. I do think we’re better for the adversity ... I'm excited for what's to come."

The “World Series hangover” conversation has followed the Dodgers since they reported for spring training. It slowly revealed itself in ways that were both obvious and small.

Start with the bullpen, where every impact reliever who returned from last year’s title-winning team either regressed in their performance, spent time sidelined with an injury, or in several cases endured both after the heavy workload they shouldered in last year's playoffs.

“I think it would be probably trying to fool ourselves if we said it didn't have anything to do with it,” right-hander Michael Kopech, who has been limited to just 14 appearances this year and will begin the playoffs on the injured list with a knee problem, said last month. “But at the same time, that's what we all sign up for. Any team that was in the position that we were last year would have done the same.”

“There probably is some mental fatigue and some physical [carry] over,” fellow right-hander Blake Treinen echoed. “But to say it's an effect on the whole year, I don't know. I think getting caught up on excuses and reasons is a dangerous thing.”

The bullpen has pointed elsewhere in explaining its season-long struggles. As Treinen noted, “at the end of the day, we get paid to handle” the burdens of bouncing back from whatever happened the previous fall.

The Dodgers also tried to mitigate such factors, bolstering the group with the veteran offseason signings of Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates. But as they flopped, the unit as a whole suffered one calamity after another. The more they spiraled, the harder it became for speculation about the after-effects of last October to be blocked out.

Read more:Shaikin: Dodgers fans should take a moment to appreciate team's success before anxiety returns

“You don’t try to lean on the what-ifs and maybes and this could be and that couldn’t be,” Treinen said. “We just have a job, and it’s been weird [this year].”

On the other side of the ball, the Dodgers dealt with a different dynamic in the wake of last year’s triumph. For an offense usually predicated on a disciplined daily approach and ability to work quality at-bats, there were long stretches of the season in which that edge would seemingly soften. When consistent execution at the plate looked like a puzzlingly difficult task.

“This is not an excuse, but we started the year last year really early, we played until November, and then this year we started early again,” infielder Miguel Rojas said, citing not only the Dodgers’ grind to get through last postseason but also their two international trips to Japan and South Korea over the last 18 months.

“We're human beings. And sometimes you get tired, especially mentally. You got a lot of things going on in your life, and your year. It's not easy to be locked in every single time.”

That was especially evident during the team’s second-half slide, when a common contrast could be drawn between the Dodgers and their upset-minded opponents.

“When you're the defending champions … we definitely got everyone's best shot this year,” Muncy said.

And, too often, the Dodgers struggled to conjure the intensity to match.

“That's part of what we signed up for, but it takes a tax,” Roberts said. “It's tough every day to bring your best when you know that other teams are bringing their best … You try to put forth every game is the same, April is just as important as September and October. That in theory is great. But it’s hard to do that in practice.”

Add in the fact that “when you make deep playoff runs every year, it takes a toll on guys' bodies. And this year, I think you saw it more than ever," noted Muncy, who missed time with knee and oblique injuries.

Despite all that, of course, the Dodgers still rang in what has become a nearly annual tradition on Thursday night. They sprayed bottles and smoked cigars in a division-clinching clubhouse celebration. They doused Shohei Ohtani with all manner of liquid and “MVP” chants. They turned the booze-soaked plastic lining on the floor into a slip-and-slide for members of their training and support staff.

“This never feels old,” Freeman said from behind champagne-drenched ski goggles.

“It's still the best feeling in the world,” a shirtless Clayton Kershaw added.

Read more:Roki Sasaki and Clayton Kershaw boost bullpen, Dodgers magic number reduced to 1

Amid the scene, however, was also a business-like understanding.

Winning the division was what the Dodgers always expected to accomplish.

Repeating as World Series champions, and overcoming all the hangover effects that have followed them to this point, remains the ultimate challenge.

“We've been battle-tested,” Muncy said, framing the ups and downs of this year as building blocks to lean on in the postseason.

“The thing that I think is pretty telling is, [with] all that we've gone through, this team stayed connected,” Roberts similarly declared.

The path ahead still isn’t simple. The team will have to take the long route through October — starting with a best-of-three wild card round next week, rather than a bye to the division series.

But lately, they’ve seen signs that their hangover might be subsiding, winning 12 of 17 games behind a more consistent offense, a dominant surge from the starting rotation, and a bullpen that is getting new reinforcements from the likes of Kershaw, Roki Sasaki and (likely starting in the playoffs) Emmet Sheehan.

Read more:Can Roki Sasaki’s return provide Dodgers trustworthy relief? Early signs were promising

“Yeah, we won the division," Roberts said. "But on top of that, more important, we’re playing good baseball.”

The goal now is to maintain that momentum, embrace the lessons this regular season provided, and avoid any further pitfalls that have tripped up so many previous defending champions before them.

After all, winning consecutive World Series might not be easy. But next year, they'd love to give it yet another try.

“It’s more about playing for each other, trusting each other,” Roberts said. "The rest of it will take care of itself.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Dodger Stadium won't be empty Sunday, even though the next time the Dodgers play at home will be Tuesday in a National League Division Series opener.

But LA Card Show will make its Dodger Stadium debut that day with a Dodger blue-tinged format that includes a watch party of the team's regular-season finale starting at 12:10 p.m. on DodgerVision.

Most of the time, however, attendees likely will have their heads down, studying the intricacies of trading cards and memorabilia of all stripes and types. More than 350 collectibles vendors will display, buy, sell and trade wares across sports, Pokémon, Disney and other trading card games along with comics, toys and art.

“It’s the perfect blend of card show and cultural experience, and Dodger Stadium provides the ultimate backdrop for us to lean in and create an extraordinary event.” said Chris Koenig, executive director of Dodgers 365, the program that brings outside events into Chavez Ravine.

Read more:Dodgers defeat Diamondbacks to clinch their 12th NL West title in 13 seasons

The event begins at 10 a.m. and will include live DJ sets, food vendors, brand activations, giveaways and an autograph lounge with former Dodgers Ramón Martínez, Joe Kelly and Orel Hershiser, who owns a collectibles store in Claremont called Legends’ Attic.

Tickets are available at lacardshow.com/tickets.

Get the best, most interesting and strangest stories of the day from the L.A. sports scene and beyond from our newsletter The Sports Report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Cal Raleigh got his 60th home run ball.

Two fans — a 45-year-old man who originally caught the historic ball and a 12-year-old boy who was gifted the ball by the kind stranger sitting behind him — got bats signed by the Seattle Mariners star catcher.

And baseball fans got to enjoy a feel-good story as the 2025 MLB season winds down.

Read more:All about Cal Raleigh's 60th home run — and a fan's random act of kindness that followed

Raleigh's historic 60th home run, second long ball Wednesday night, came against Colorado Rockies reliever Angel Chivilli in the bottom of the eighth inning. The ball soared 389 feet into the right field stands and ended up in the hands of longtime Seattle resident Glenn Mutti-Driscoll, a licensed hydrogeologist who was attending the game with some co-workers.

It didn't stay Mutti-Driscoll's possession for long.

“I was standing with it for 15 or 20 seconds and there was a kid in front of me," Mutti-Driscoll said Thursday in an interview, via the Seattle Times.

In that moment, Mutti-Driscoll was moved to make an incredibly generous gesture. He handed the historic and potentially quite valuable ball to a 12-year-old boy he had never met.

“The whole thing was surreal. It just was happening so fast,” Mutti-Driscoll said. “And standing there with it and I guess looking down at the kid, and he deserves it more than me.”

The recipient was Marcus Rueblos, a sixth-grader from Maple Valley, Wash., who was attending the game with his family.

"A genuine act of kindness, a true gentleman," Marcus' father Galan Rueblos later wrote on Facebook. "Marcus was in tears. We were all in shock. The fans were going crazy!"

Mariners security quickly whisked Marcus and Galan Rueblos away to get the ball authenticated. According to an MLB Network report, Mutti-Driscoll told Marcus at the time to make sure Raleigh got the ball. Rueblos said during a radio appearance Thursday that his son would have done that anyway.

“My son whispered to me and said, ‘Dad, because it’s Cal, I want him to have [the ball],’" Rueblos told KIRO-FM (97.3) in Seattle. "He was never thinking, are we going to keep it for money? That wasn’t even a thought.”

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Ken Goldin, founder and CEO of Goldin Auctions, told The Times on Thursday that Raleigh's 60th home run ball likely would have been "a six-figure ball" had it gone on the auction block.

Marcus received a Raleigh-signed bat and an invitation to batting practice in exchange for the ball, according to the Mariners. Rueblos said his son had hoped to meet Raleigh the night of the historic home run but was unable to since the game was still in progress at the time.

Marcus understood and was thrilled with the experience, Rueblos added — and was still "hugging the bat" the next morning.

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“We were never thinking about how much the ball was worth, or the most we could get,” Rueblos said. “We have the future MVP, hopefully, and [Marcus] touched history, that’s kind of more precious; he’ll live with that forever.”

The feel-good didn't stop there either.

On Thursday, the Mariners launched a search for the mysterious stranger who had gifted the ball to someone he had never met. Eventually, they tracked down Mutti-Driscoll and were able to get him, his wife Catherine and their sons Ethan, 14, and Aiden, 10, to T-Mobile Park for a pregame meet-and-greet with Raleigh before that night's game against the Rockies.

Raleigh gave Ethan and Aiden signed balls and presented their father with a bat, on which Big Dumper had written, "Glenn, thanks for being a a good guy & nice catch."

Raleigh's two home runs Wednesday helped the Mariners defeat the Colorado Rockies 9-2 and clinch the American League West Division title for the first time since 2001. In doing so, the player lovingly known as Big Dumper became the seventh player in MLB history to hit at least 60 home runs in a season (joining Babe Ruth, Roger Maris, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds and Aaron Judge.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

With two games left in the regular season and a spot in the postseason on the line, the Mets are looking to bolster their bullpen.

New York is calling up relief prospect Dylan Ross from Triple-A before Saturday's game against the Marlins.

SNY MLB Insider Andy Martino reported the move wouldn't be made ahead of the series opener, but likely at some point this weekend. 

The 25-year-old right-hander had a 2.17 ERA, and 1.15 WHIP over 49 appearances across three minor league levels this season. Ross saw most of his action in Triple-A, pitching to a 1.69 ERA with 39 strikeouts over 28 games (32.0 IP).

Martino reported on Sept. 17 that Ross was "a real possibility to get a tryout this month" as the team works to fill their righty reliever need.

Ross was a 13th-round pick by the Mets out of the University of Georgia in the 2022 MLB Draft, but underwent Tommy John surgery during the 2022 season and a revision procedure in 2023, causing him to miss all of the 2023 season. 

He pitched one inning for St. Lucie in 2024 before throwing 54.0 innings during the 2025 season, recording an impressive 80 strikeouts to just 33 walks.

The reliever is listed at 6-foot-5 and 251 pounds and features a fastball that sits at an average of 96.8 mph, with the ability to hit triple-digits. He also throws a splitter, cutter, slider, and occasional curveball.

Ross is eligible for the Rule 5 Draft this winter due to being a college draftee with three seasons of professional baseball under his belt.

In a corresponding roster move, Kevin Herget has been designated for assignment.